BEA’s Cameron Anderson flies past two Waseca players on his way to the rim. Unfortunately, the Bucs still lost big to the Bluejays, 67-34.

It was a rough night at the office for the Blue Earth Area boys basketball team (6-10) on Tuesday, Jan. 30. The Bucs were beaten soundly by the Windom Area Eagles (12-8), 68-40 at home.

BEA sophomore Caelan Sanders was the only Buc to reach a double-digit scoring total as he finished the game with 14 points. As it turned out, Blue Earth Area trailed throughout the entire game.

Windom’s front court proved to be the difference in the contest. 6-foot-6 Dalton Smith, 6-foot-5 Kaden Elder, and 6-foot-4 Ryan Franz helped control the glass on both ends of the floor for the Eagles.

Thanks to a multitude of second shot opportunities, and an imposing defense, the Eagles led 41-21 at halftime. The Bucs went on to score just 19 more points the rest of the game.

The Bucs have now dropped three of their last four ballgames. Afterwards, BEA head coach Colby Swanson acknowledged his team’s difficulties on the boards.

“They got a ton of offensive rebounds, and it’s not because we weren’t in the right positions, it’s just that they’re bigger and stronger and quicker than we are. They made the extra pass and shot the ball extremely well, it’s just one of those nights where it’s tough,” Swanson said.

Freshman guard Austin Thielfoldt did not dress for the game as he was nursing an ankle injury.

Thielfoldt and the Bucs were back in action at St. Peter on Feb. 2. Results from this game will be available in next week’s edition of the Faribault County Register.

BEA 61, MCW 44

Blue Earth Area’s road game with Martin County West was originally scheduled for Tuesday, Jan. 23. Due to weather issues, the game was postponed until Saturday, Jan. 27. Once the game was finally played, the maroon and gold fired on all cylinders against the Mavericks.

On offense, the Bucs were led by sophomore Carter Bell. The sharpshooting guard cashed in from downtown as he connected on six of his nine attempts from beyond the arc. Bell finished the game with a season-high of 18 points in the win.

Senior Jacob Vaske was also a top performer as he collected a season-high 14 rebounds while also adding 14 points. It was the second double-double for Vaske on the season.

For the game, the Bucs held the Mavericks to just 25.9 percent shooting from the field.

Waseca 67, BEA 34

The Buccaneers surrendered 40 points to the Bluejays from inside the paint in their Jan. 26 matchup. By doing most of their offensive damage from close range, the Bluejays maintained a 50 percent field goal percentage throughout the ballgame. Meanwhile, the Bucs shot just 29.7 percent from the field.

Turnover problems also plagued the Bucs as they lost possession of the ball 15 times compared to just nine turnovers for the Bluejays.

Caelan Sanders paced the Bucs in scoring with 11 while Carter Bell chipped in with six on the evening.